St. Landry democrat., 1887-12-24
A FEMALE BROKER.
PROMISING TO PAY SIXTEEN PER
CENT. PER MONTH.
Her Operations Confined Entirely to Wo-
men - Complaints from Ladies' to the
New York Police That They Had Been
Swindled Out of Large Sums of Money.

Another female tinancier of the same
calibre as the notorious Mrs Howe, who
SO successfully swindled BOston's fair
spectators out of over half million
dollars few years ago, has loomed up
in New York, and, like the Boston
woman banker, has come to grief. She
is Nine. Marie La Touche, having at
various periods been known as Mrs Dow
and Mrs. Ware. Before coming to this
city to victimiZe women of slender means
but ambitious to get rich, Mrs. La Touche
had successfully piled her swindling vo-
cation in several other cities.
During the past fortnight upward of a
dozen ladies, all more or less prominently
connected in society, have complained
to Inspector Byrnes that they had been
swindled out of large sums of m oney
by Mrs. Marie La Touche, who carried
on brokerage business at No. 165 West
| Twenty street. The woman op-
Grated with women only, and by means
| of tlowery advertisements in the news
! papers she managed to lure into her net
victims who were promised or guar
anteed profits of $50 per month on an
investment of $500. 1t was precisely the
same method that had been adopted by
the banking establishment of Mrs. Howe
in Boston, the principal processing to
| make the investments in such a manner
that large returns were sure to follow.
Although large number of ladies
claimed to be victims, it was difficult for
| the inspector to induce any of them to
come to the front and 90 to court as COM
plainants, some of them fearing publicity
and others not wishing their husbands to
discover their speculative proclivities.
Mrs. Clara Johnson, of No l56 East
Eighty fourth street, however, was TSe-
vailed upon to accompany the inspector
| to Jefferson Market Court when Judge
| German issued a warrant for the arrest
| of the woman banker or broker. De
tective Sergeants McManus and Lyman
succeeded in arresting the prisoner and
brought her to police headquarters.
Mrs. La Touche, who is a ne-loOking
woman of about forty, is tall and stately
in appearance. When brought into the
inspectors private office she stood be-
fore him with an air of defiance and re-
fused to answer any and all questions as
to her name, age, residence, &c. \ few
moments later she was confronted by
Mrs. Johnson and half dozen more of
her fair victims, two of whom, on gaz-
ing at the statue-like figure of the wo-
man, broke down and Wept historically
as between their sobs they told how they
had been robbed of all their money by
the brazenf faced swndler The latter
then also betrayed some womanly feel
ings and asked to be taken away. She
was accordingly locked up in one of the
cells downstairs, but three hours later
she sent the following note to the in
spector:
| am exceedingly sorry, and regret very
much my action at my interview with you.
| will be very glad now to be brought up
stairs, when | will answer any questions
you may desire to ask me.
NINE. La ToUCHE.
Meanwhile, however, the inspector had
sent for and brought to headquarters her
alleged husband Royal La Touche who
has an office on Pine street, and who, it
was asCertained, had been backing his al
legged wife in her financial schemes. La
TOuche is tall, heavily built man of
about forty-tive years, with a heavy black |
mustache, and has the appearance of a |
shreWd business man. From him the in
spector learned much of the womans |
history, which, SUMMARIZED is somewhat |
as follows:
Her maiden name was Mary Grass, her
father, Jacob Grass, being an old New
Englander, who, though once an honest |
farmer has on more than one occasion
figured in swindling schemes with his
daughter. She first appeared in Boston
in 1870, with man named Warren,
whom she claimed to be her husband
They carried on together swindling
schemes similar to that she is now
charged with and were arrested several
times but on each occasion they managed
to escape punishment. In 1875 Warren
disappeared from Boston, and, it is said,
he died shortly afterward. \ few months
later she made her debut as the wife of
a MIR. Dow, prominent business man in
Boston, who also died in that city year
Or SO subsequently. About that time the
woman purchased one share of the cap
ital stock of the Michigan Central Rail
road Company, but she forged the certiti-
cate to represent sixty shares, which
she deposited in one of the city banks. A
few days later she attempted to procure a
loan from the bank on the forged certiti-
cate, but the forgery was detected in
time, and the fair forger "skipped' the
town and went to st. John, n. b.
AT the latter place she was soon after
ward arrested, together with her father,
Jacob Grass, charged with forging and
trying to pass a check for $1,70O, but
both managed to escape the vigilance of
The authorities. They next turned up in
Chicago. In that city, however, after
,he lapse of several weeks, she was dis
covered under the name of Mrs. Mary
Ware, and rearrested, taken back to St. {
John and tried On that trial her father,
t is said, turned States evidence against !
ler, but the jury disagreed, and she, be- {
ng liberated on small bail, soon shook s
he dust from her feet, appearing next {
n this city. Here she engaged in pri- 8
zate banking and brokerage office, on /
Union Square, with Mrs. Mcintyre. {
The firm did a thriving business for '
! time, but the two partners became S
involved in quarrel over the di- a
'ision of the proceeds and they sepa- r
ated. Then the woman went to Phila- v
lelphia and engaged in similar business, +
Inder the name of Mrs. Brown, She was